


Unexpected

by AnUnstoppableWarrior



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-22
Updated: 2014-08-18
Packaged: 2018-02-09 23:31:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 22,586
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2002269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AnUnstoppableWarrior/pseuds/AnUnstoppableWarrior
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The world of fairy tales and the supernatural had always been kept a secret, and for a good reason. When those worlds are exposed and threatened, Ivan, a reformed hunter turned journalist, will be thrown into the adventure he never wanted to return three captured mermen to the sea while taking up his old ways and hunting down the vampire who'd imprisoned them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Okay well...here's this. I'll be honest, I've fallen out of the Hetalia fandom a bit in favor of other fandoms, but I still love these characters and this story was sitting in a folder with three completed chapters so I figured, what the hell, I'll post it.

The house was one of the largest and grandest he'd ever seen. A neatly and very well trimmed garden, expansive in the front and no doubt even larger in the back, lined the walkway up to the front door. Two old fashioned knockers, one on each door, were so well attached to the wood they looked to be carved from the same tree. Different from what he'd seen at other client's homes, there were two different animals, a lion on the right and a unicorn on the left. The lion had a solid steel ring in its mouth, and the unicorn had a twisted one. He wondered if the unicorn had been on the door before they were known to be real.

Grasping the lion's ring, he knocked three times, then waited patiently for a servant or maid to open the door and escort him in. Gazing at the unicorn, he thought back to when it and creatures like it had been discovered to be alive and out there, and the resulting rush and panic to know everything possible about them. He hadn't been truly interested when the things had been revealed, but soon enough he was forced to shift his work. People wanted to hear all about them and the people who "cared" for them, though the stupidity and ignorant mind of the general public disgusted him. Did they really think beings like merfolk and werepeople were treated kindly? Did they think vampires and witches were just accepted into society?

As soon as greedy, wealthy men and women saw the beauty, grace, and skill of the merpeople, they were hunted down and captured. It was assumed they didn't speak any human languages, as none had ever spoken to a human. As such, they were treated less then humanely, bargained and sold like common fish. Vast aquariums were built, both in museums and private estates so that the half human fish could be observed in a safe environment. The well being of the merpeople were not taken into account, and call him a supernatural sympathizer, but he believed treatment like that was wrong and should be righted. But no, every country just wanted to make a quick buck and they'd trample over and exterminate whole races to do it.

Werepeople, whether part wolf, cat, horse, whatever they changed into, were slightly worse off then the merfolk. Some were very savage and vicious, and so all were branded with that label. They were trapped and held in zoos, where people spent money to see them as well as other non-human based fairy tale creatures, like unicorns and hybrids. And though locking a human up as such would cause a national outcry, perhaps even an international one, apparently it was okay if they were some kind of freak and had genes other than 100% human.

Vampires by far had it the worst. Nevermind already being labeled evil before they were thought to be real, vampires fed primarily on humans and therefore had to be dealt with. And by dealt with he meant completely wiped out. It was barbaric how easily the media and leaders lied to their citizens, condemning the "beasts" actions and calling for their destruction. It wasn't hard to see that these creatures, these sentient beings just wanted to be free again, to live their lives with their families. And it made him sick that people like him, who wanted to help the poor things, were being considered as loonies and radicals. Hadn't the world already gone through rights movements? Hadn't the African descendants and women of the world protested and fought bravely, in the face of hopelessness, for their freedom? And now those same people wanted to kill off species, entire species, for being different?

It made him ashamed to be a human being.

Finally the door opened and the tapping of his foot, brought on by impatience(he was a reporter, a journalist, not a gentleman), stopped as he was greeted by not a servant or maid as he had been expecting, but by the master of the manor himself. Well, he assumed; the clothing on the man was tailored to perfection, his appearance was pristine, and the aura around him was thick with pride, wealth, and a level of command the man obviously expected people to fall under.

He would not be swayed so easily.

"Ah, yes. You must be from the paper, correct?" The man said, and he was struck by how much taller he was than this man; at least half a foot. He'd known his name at some point, the cursive loops written on a paper somewhere on his desk, but it'd slipped his mind as soon as he left the haven of his office. He had no interest in the personal life of someone so petty and selfish.

"Yes, I'm here to interview you on the subject of merpeople and your interest in them, as well as your studies and...care of said beings," he informed the man, who waved his hand in dismissal and walked into his house, leaving the door open and letting him enter at his leisure. Such a strange man.

Entering the lavishly decorated entrance hall and closing the door not so gently behind him, he ignored the majority of the room to gaze in fascination at the main display, the one thing the man clearly wanted everyone to see first thing. Though there were no "fish" in this part of the tank, a huge glass cylinder resting atop the wall separating the room from any others. It was like a giant hamster maze, the only difference being this one was filled with probably tons of water, and high quality, pure looking water too. Just how rich was this guy?

"Quite the piece of work, is it not? The tank spans the entire house, each tube connected to the main tank in the grand living room. Would you care to see it? I do not currently know where the lads are, but if you're lucky you might see one." The young man walked with his head held high and his hands folded behind his back. You are so full of yourself, he thought, trailing behind the man.

He may have been for their freedom, but even he couldn't deny wanting to see a merman, if what he heard was correct. Lads were boys, right? So these particular merfolk must be male. He thought it weird and kinda creepy that this guy would only collect males, but everyone had a hobby he supposed.

The grand living room was certainly that, the wide room dominated by an entire wall dedicated to the aquarium. A calming blue-green glow saturated the room, the lights dimmed low and candles lit sporadically. Never one for material possessions, except maybe the frayed scarf around his neck, he ignored the backdrop and inspected the piece the young master showed off as his pride and joy.

"Shall we sit?" A gesture to the sofas set up near the glass. Refreshments and light appetizers had already been placed upon it. He sat and ignored the drinks, ignored the food, ignored pretty much everything except the man and the tank next to him. He didn't come here to dine and chat like old friends; he came here to do his job and he would not let the fanciful expenses of this man effect him so.

"Would you care for a drink? Food perhaps?"

"No thank you," he ground out. The man put his hands up and sat down as well.

"No harm in being a proper gentleman."

Barely resisting an eye roll, he dug through his bag and pulled out a recorder, as well as his camera. It wouldn't be time for photos until the end of the interview but he liked to be prepared. Meant he could leave faster.

"Let's just get started, hm?" he asked, pulling the recorder to his mouth. He started with a generic opening, giving his name, Ivan Braginsky, and his subject's name(after a quick look at his notes), Arthur Kirkland. Then he gave the purpose of the interview and started questioning the man. His notebook, filled with questions and information, was perched on his lap for reference and guidance.

He asked innocent questions at first; When did you first take an interest in collecting these specimens?; How did you acquire them?; Have you had any trouble caring for them? Things the readers of his company wanted to see. But eventually his questions became more and more out there, biased almost as he attacked the man's position on treating half humans less than humanely.

"If you must know, I treat those under my care with the utmost respect and privacy. They live peaceful, danger-free lives, where they don't have to worry about predators or poachers. Do you know how many tails are being cut off these poor creatures?" And the man scoffed, looking disgusted at the very thought. "Sick human beings like that won't harm these ones, as I have taken it upon myself to care for them. Besides, they like it here."

"They like it?" Ivan asked, raising a skeptical eyebrow. "How do you know? Have you conversed with them?"

"Don't be preposterous. I have my way, a sort of method of communication. It would be exceedingly more difficult to care for beings such as these without the help of something similar."

"As in...?"

For the slightest of moments, Ivan could have sworn he saw the glint of far too white of teeth as Arthur smiled. "Why, fairies, of course."

"Fairies? And how did that happen?"

Another sly smile and deflection. "As I said I have my ways. The important thing is that they are happy, and I intend to keep them that way."

When the interview was finished, Ivan was free to wonder the main rooms and follow the tubes, snapping a photo whenever he thought it necessary or right. He still hadn't seen any mermen yet, and as he entered the living room again, to bid Arthur farewell and be on his way, the most intriguing thing happened.

Not just one, but three mermen swam into the main tank, and though Ivan had seen pictures, nothing could even get close to seeing the real things. They had a grace to them that was second to none, the way they cut through the water like...well, like they were born to.

Not moving from his spot from the door but desperately aching to get closer, he was afraid that his approach would scare the fish away. So he stayed and observed from afar.

Two of the fish, from what he could see, were mirror images of each other, the only differentiating thing about them being that one was colored darker than the other, like a picture tinted red. The third was the same size and looked like the others, with only a minor difference here and there. Where the twins had short hair, he had longer. Where they had the same style of tail, he had one different. And where they had arm bands, he had wrist. But if he had to guess, Ivan would say all three were brothers, and it was just another similarity they all had with human beings. They had families, not just merpeople but all the different creatures, and it wasn't right that men and woman, pigs, took them away from that.

For their own good. Bullshit.

The glass muffled it somewhat, but he could clearly hear high pitch squeaks and whistles as the mermen talked to each other. Lifting his camera, he snapped a few shots of them together and separately, then held his camera at near full zoom to get a better look at them.

The biggest merman, the one with dark red-brown hair and red looking eyes, was making hand gestures and whistling continuously, while the other two were enraptured by whatever he was saying. He had a deep red tail, the scales flashing purple when the water refracted the low lighting right. His arm bands were gold, and Ivan could admit the color looked good on him. The merman twisted suddenly, caught up in his tale(Ivan assumed he was telling a story or something)and an inky black...tattoo?...could be seen, taking up most of his back. Ivan couldn't see very well from this distance, but from what he could it looked impressive.

His twin, smaller but not by much, was like a lighter version of his brother. He had blond hair, but it must have been made of gold for how bright and shiny it looked. His tail was a deep, rich blue, like the sky or surrounding water, and it shimmered green. He had no tattoo, and unlike his brother his arm bands were silver. Unfortunately, his back was to Ivan, so he could not see his face.

The third merman had a purple tail, the colors ranging from dark purple to light, like a spectrum of just that color from top to bottom. This one had lighter blond hair than his brother, and he wasn't sure if it was natural or a result of being in water but his hair seemed wavier. The wrist bands were silver as well, and he too had his back to Ivan.

The dark haired one finished his...whatever, and as the other two bent forward and back, hands around their midsections, Ivan realized they were laughing because their brother had told a joke. The moment and its familiarity crashed into him, causing him to take a step back and bump gently into the door, but it creaked and in an instant, faster than Ivan could process, the mermen focused in on him and darted away towards a tube. Seized by an unknown force, Ivan called out "Wait!" as he moved closer to the glass. Not expecting compliance, he was shocked and stilled by the couch as the blue tailed merman slowed and gazed back at him, and Ivan saw the sky reflected in those eyes before the dark haired one pulled his twin out of sight.

It was silent after his sudden outburst, the room quieter without the faint squeaks and whistles of the merman. The quiet was disrupted, however, by a side door opening and his host striding into the room.

"There you are, I'm glad you're still here. There will be a gathering here this coming weekend, a party if you must, and as I have enjoyed our chat so much I have decided to extend an invitation, if you will accept it." Arthur held out a white envelope.

Ivan normally would say no. Normally, he would decline with a barely there snark to his tone, but he felt compelled to accept. He told himself it was nothing, that the unease he felt was a natural response to the thought of being surrounded by people he didn't know and didn't care to know, but nonetheless he took the invitation without a word. "I'll think about it." He was definitely going.

"Splendid! I wait eagerly for the chance to speak more in depth with you about many topics."

I get the feeling that's not the only thing you want. He kept his thoughts to himself and turned to leave. Hand reaching for the front door handle, a muffled voice, distorted and scratchy, stopped him.

"He's not what he seems."

Ivan turned slowly to the tube to his right, where the dark haired merman was laying in, elbows holding his head up as he laid on his stomach, tail swishing slowly through the water. He was staring directly at Ivan, red eyes like fire in their intensity.

Ivan blinked, then glanced around, but there was no one else in the room.

"Are ya deaf?"

Ivan's head snapped back to the merman, who was looking at him like he was dumb. He felt dumb as he gaped, astounded that a merman had just spoken to him. No one has ever reported hearing a merperson speak one of our languages. Is this one special or can they all?

Clearing his throat, Ivan wet his lips before replying. "No, you just...caught me off guard. You can speak."

"Well of course I speak. I'm not a fish, don't let the tail fool ya."

"No I know, its just that...no one's heard a merman speak any of our languages before, or if they have they never said anything. We didn't know if you even could."

"Tch, shows how stupid humans are. They think they're so great because they have legs and can walk on land. Weak things can't even hold their breath more than two minutes." He looked contemplative. "It's fun to drown 'em though." His smile was devious and terrifying coupled with what he'd just said.

Ivan wasn't effected. As strange as this was, it was not his first brush with a non-human being, and it wouldn't be his last, to his ire. "How...uncivilized of you to enjoy drowning humans."

"Yeah, well, you like what you like, I guess. But seriously, you probably shouldn't come back, 'cause I swear, the next time you do it's gonna be as dinner."

The unease he'd felt earlier returned full force. He knew there was something going on here, but this merman was only solidifying his fears into something tangible, something that could reach out of the dark and harm him. "Thank you for your concern, but I don't think anything will happen."

The fish shrugged his shoulders and pushed away from the glass. "Alright but I tried to warn ya." Then he was gone, and Ivan was walking out the door into the sunlight, unease and intrigue mixing oddly within him.


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as he cleared the garden, a familiar and unwanted presence sidled up next to him. He ignored it for the most part, unfazed by the cold the entity radiated. He could feel its eyes on him as he walked to his car, opening a door but pausing.

"Don't you have anything better to do? Like maybe go away."

From the corner of his eye he could see the ghost forming into a human-like shape, features aged and withered. Why the old man haunted him he didn't know, but it bugged the hell out of him. Couldn't he just let go and move on already?

"Is that anyway to speak to your elders, boy? Didn't your father teach you good?"

"You are a ghost. I can speak to you however I wish. And you should know that my father took after his father in the 'raising his children' aspect, isn't that right, Grandfather." Knowing it wouldn't do any good but desperately hoping anyway, he crawled into his car and slammed the door, though the presence was still there around him, now just a voice floating through the air. "Why do you torture me so? What have I done to deserve this? We barely saw each other when you were alive, spoke even less so; why must you haunt me?"

"Some day you'll figure it out," came the cryptic response, and, frustrated, he started the engine and made his way back to his office.

It was blessedly silent a majority of the way back, but his grandfather, who he affectionately(mockingly)referred to as Winter for his cold demeanor when he lived, broke the silence. "You know that man was not human."

It wasn't a question so he didn't answer, but he did think about it, which is just what the old ghost wanted. Yes, that man, Arthur, had not been human, but what he actually was escaped Ivan's knowledge. Like his father, and the ghost who wouldn't leave him be, he had been trained to detect things like that since he could walk, but it was a part of himself he didn't want to indulge. He repressed certain urges, his killer instincts, and his curiosity for all things supernatural to a minimum level, and he was happy with the life he lead now; Winter had no reason to remind him of the past.

The ghost followed him all the way to his office, like he did every day, and at one point Ivan had done all he could, all he had been taught, to keep the ghost away, but now he allowed it with only a glare and dirty look to show his discontent. The guy needed to die for real, or go to a ghost bar or something, anything so long as he left Ivan alone. Was that too much to ask for?

He pulled out his recorder and camera, the invitation falling out with the objects. He paused and stared at it, Winter's cold presence next to him. "If you plan on being an idiot and getting yourself in trouble, at least be armed. Wood, silver, blessed or not, bring everything you can. I didn't pass down my knowledge for it to be ignored."

"You mean your curse," he muttered, resuming his task of emptying out his bag. He didn't want to see a human and analyze all the ways he could kill that person. He didn't want to know which ways were the best for killing certain creatures. He didn't want to know how to kill period, but the knowledge was ingrained in his mind and nothing short of a lobotomy would free him from it.

But he was redeeming himself, in his eyes. He used his skills to help. He used his knowledge of healing based herbs to help wounded animals, natural and supernatural alike. He used his skills and years of training to help people in need, whether it was the little old lady living across from him and her groceries, or helping someone lift something they were struggling with. Be it big or small he would help, and he'd continue doing so as long as his ghosts haunted him(and by ghosts he meant just the one).

"You will see one day," Winter said before he dispersed himself, and Ivan was left in his office, confused, bitter, and alone.

Gritting his teeth, he clenched and unclenched his fists in an attempt to not destroy his surroundings. It wouldn't look good to his boss if he chucked his desk or chair out the window, and he was sure someone might get hit, which was something he didn't need hanging over him. He was done killing, he was done being uncontrollably angry. He had his life in order and he would not let his bastard of a grandfather ruin it for him. So he picked up his recorder and sat heavily at his desk, opening a blank document and getting to work.

By the time he was finished the sun had disappeared below the horizon hours ago and most of his colleagues had left. He rubbed a hand along the back of his neck as he felt an ache coming on from sitting in the same position for so long. Standing, he gathered the pictures he'd printed out from earlier that day but stopped at the one of all three mermen together, eyes drawn to each individually. He wished, with all his 'great and useful' knowledge, as Winter would call it, that he could help them escape, be it back into an ocean or just away from Arthur it was up to them. It wasn't right to keep them caged like that. He decided to speak to Arthur about it more during the party; maybe he could convince the man—but no, Arthur probably wouldn't give the fish up unless he acquired something of equal value in return and Ivan had nothing to offer, but if his hunch about what Arthur was proved true, he wouldn't be willing to give that up either. Shutting off the lights and locking the door to his office, he supposed he'd just have to find a compromise.

Winter had left him alone pretty much all day, and he was thankful for that, but his luck had never been great and as soon as he walked onto the sidewalk he felt the coldness from Winter's ghost follow him. Sighing in aggravation to show his obvious dislike of the ghost and his hopeless situation pertaining to it, he walked silently to his car.

The ride to his apartment was short and before he knew it he was parked in his spot, though the ride there was lost to him. It was probably a bad thing he'd zoned out while driving, but it was only Wednesday, not to mention late at night, so he doubted anyone was getting raging drunk and then making the poor choice to drive a vehicle. Maybe not the most concrete reasoning, but he didn't care, not with so many other things plaguing his mind and vying for attention. He had his ghost problem and the upcoming party and that one merman who had stopped when he'd called out, and what he really wanted to do was down five beers, or maybe a bottle of vodka, and pass out on his bed. If it wasn't for work in the morning that would be his foreseeable future, but alas. He turned the car off, trudged up to his unit and made himself a simple dinner of an omelet and some toast. Carelessly throwing the dishes to the sink, he walked to his room and headed straight for the shower.

After standing under the steaming water for ten minutes, he stepped out and wiped a line across the mirror, only to be met with his sorry reflection. He looked frazzled and dreary, overall unhappy and it made him sigh and lean on the counter, eyes following drops of water from his hair to the floor.

After another wasted ten minutes of standing and damning his life, damning his family and damning the world, he pushed away and took the time to put on pajama bottoms before collapsing on his already turned down bed. His idea of making the bed in the morning was getting it ready for that night's sleep. No point in making everything all nice and tidy if nobody but a nosy ghost was going to see it, and he really didn't feel the need to impress his grandfather anymore.

He often wondered if he'd done something in a past life to deserve this.

As it was he was standing inside the greeting hall of Arthur's large house, surrounded by dozens of people he didn't know and wearing a suit, just one bane of his existence(he was lucky enough to have been blessed with more than one). It had been on the advice of Winter that he wear something formal and with a lot of pockets, just so he had multiple places to stash whatever weapons he brought along. And he did, he could feel the cold metal of the gun at his side, its blessed silver bullets sitting in the pocket of his vest below it. He carried a flask of holy water, as well as a cross around his neck, hidden beneath his clothing. If the situation absolutely called for it, he'd brought his bag with him, under the guise that he would take more pictures if Arthur would let him, though really there was just a small crossbow and hunting knife resting in there. The crossbow's bolts were made entirely of wood ingrained with demon repellants and crosses. Not very effective for serious combat since the wooden bolts were weaker than any metal one and prone to snapping, and as an added disadvantage they were slower when fired, but Ivan didn't plan on shooting it from a distance, if he even needed to shoot it at all; it worked swell up close and personal, and had saved his life more than once before he'd given that life up.

Though now it looked like he was being dragged back into it.

The idle chatter ceased when two stoic looking servants opened double doors on an overhanging walkway above them. Arthur strode out and addressed the crowd, welcoming everyone and giving his expectations for the evening and blah, blah, blah Ivan wasn't even listening.

The 'party' commenced, and the doors to the living room were opened, and all Ivan could picture was prey stepping into the lion's den. These normal people had no idea what Arthur was, they'd all just unknowingly put their lives in danger. It baffled Ivan how some people lived their lives in total obliviousness. But then, it was a curse knowing the danger of a situation, so maybe they were better off after all.

Once everyone was gathered in the lavishly decorated room(even more so than when Ivan had previously been there), something Ivan was honestly not expecting happened. The three merman swam into view.

Throughout the party they remained in sight, even swimming up to the glass at anyone's beckon. Mostly the women watched them from up close, standing in loose groups before the glass and cooing over their appearance, which Ivan noticed was different from three days ago. There was a lot more jewelry adorning them, on their heads, around their necks, up and down their arms and even around their waists, each piece swaying in a strange but not unappealing way with the water's current. They were all much more sociable and outgoing than when Ivan had seen them, and he wondered if they naturally socialized like that or if Arthur somehow forced them to act that way.

As the party wore on and Ivan found himself growing bored, he was unable to resist walking up to the glass himself. He watched the blond one with the blue tail for a bit before the red head caught his attention, darting his eyes over to a corner of the room. Glancing over, he saw Arthur talking, in a decidedly shady manner, to some of his servants. Brows drawn and eyes narrowed in suspicion, he spared the red head one last look, only to be met with urging. Without another glance he walked away from the glass and blended in with the crowd as he made his way as close as possible to Arthur.

"—rything set up, correct? I—any mistakes, understood?" He was only close enough to catch snippets of what Arthur was saying, and he'd arrived too late, as the servants bowed low and went to carry out Arthur's demands. If only Ivan knew what they were.

Making his way to the concession stand and hoping Arthur saw him alone, he waited and thought about what he'd do if things turned ugly.

"Ivan! So glad you could make it. I was afraid you wouldn't come." Bingo.

"Arthur," he greeted, turning to the man and bowing his head shallowly. "I had mixed feelings, but in the end it couldn't hurt, right? Plus I had the urging of my grandfather to attend, and I knew he wouldn't stop pestering me unless I agreed."

"Indeed, I know all about elders and their tendency to pry into their family's lives. It is an attribute I most hate, but I cannot fault them. Family is family, there to be loved."

You've never met Winter.

"Of course, but I must point out that while you say such a thing your actions speak louder."

"Whatever do you mean?"

At that he gestured to the fish tank, but Arthur chuckled. "You are very persistent about them and their freedom. I suppose they did have a family, but as you can see they are happy where they are. You might also like to know they are the only family they have left."

"Your fairies told you that, I presume?"

Arthur smiled that too white smile.

"Tell me, what do you think of them?" Arthur said, changing the topic from himself to Ivan, who didn't need to think twice before saying, "I think they deserve their freedom, I think it is wrong to imprison them so, I—"

"No no, my dear boy; what do you think of them; I know very well you wish them and others free, but how do you find them personally." It must have been a slip of the tongue, but it gave Ivan all the more reason to suspect Arthur as falsifying his identity, and more importantly, his age.

Dear boy? You've just sealed your fate.

Taking the question into serious consideration, Ivan looked over at the tank. It had never been in his mindset to think about them in a way other than either something that should be killed, rescued, or left alone. He was not taught to care for supernatural creatures personally; he was to be cold and calculating, efficient in his methods and hard as steel in his resolve and determination. And it was for very reasons like this one. Merfolk were not granted the title of beautiful and dangerous because it was untrue. There was a reason mermaids(mostly)were called sirens and warned against; they killed at sea for fun, just by leading ships to rocks with their voices alone. It would be a waste of time if their ability effected him so easily, and Ivan was struck suddenly with a thought that, what if Arthur intends to use them? What if he traps all of us here using their songs? Tenser than he'd been seconds before but skilled at looking for all intents and purposes relaxed and calm, Ivan turned back to Arthur, a small smile on his face.

"Well, they are certainly something, that's for sure. Truly there is no human equivalent to their status, even I cannot deny that. As disdainful as I find the practice, I can see why...collectors, such as yourself, pride themselves on attaining any number of these beings."

"Right you are," Arthur said with a smile, one far too friendly for Ivan's tastes. They were not friends, far from it if what Ivan was planning on doing came to light, or worse what Arthur was planning on doing. He wondered if there were others like him in the shadows, waiting for Arthur to make his move and trap all these unsuspecting humans. Ivan didn't know, then, if he would be able to stop and defeat more than three or four of them given his limited resources, and Arthur himself had to be centuries old.

He could only pray Arthur was the only one.

Arthur left after that, and Ivan wandered back over to the fish tank, observing like so many others the mermen. This time the purple tailed one was closest to him, but when the merman looked at him, there was clearly fear or something akin to it in his eyes, and his expression seemed pleading. However, on some unseen cue, the brothers drifted closer to each other, and Arthur called for attention.

"The party has been on full swing for a while now," Arthur was saying, though once again he failed to catch Ivan's full attention, "and I have set up a little surprise which I'm sure many of you will find most enjoyable." He nodded, and at once the mermen began to sing.

There had never been a sound matching in beauty and allurement than that of the one caressing his ears. Unhindered by the glass walls, the voices mixing and melding together were so seamless and melodious; he was sure by some magic this sound would cure deaf people, it was so pure and light. But he noticed everyone staring now at the mermen, and though that was not in itself unusual, the way they all simultaneously moved closer to the tank wall was, but it did its job of warning Ivan that Arthur's plan had clearly been dependent on this moment and if he was to stop him, now would be the time.

Discreetly and with no small amount of will-power, he tore his eyes from the fish and scanned his surroundings, noticing right away the doors being shut and sealed off one by one. If he didn't act fast he'd have no way of getting all these people out, so taking the risk, he pulled out his gun, searched out Arthur's gaze and when he found the man, raised the gun and fired a shot.

The mermen were startled into silence, and the crowd gasped and screamed before dying down. Nobody moved or said anything until Ivan commanded, "Everyone out! Now!"

Like frightened cattle the young men and women scurried out of the still open and unlocked doors, until only him, the mermen, and Arthur were left. It was silent again, deathly so, until Arthur started laughing, lowly before it escalated, only to be cut off suddenly. "My, I'm not not the only one lying about their identity, am I? How surprising and unfortunate that it has come to this."

Ivan didn't say anything, tense as he waited for something to happen, for either Arthur or hidden adversaries to attack him. He didn't make a habit of chatting with his opponents; too many distractions, and beings like Arthur had a way of twisting words and messing with his head. "Nothing to say? Though if I could, I must say you have cost me a great deal of food this evening, and my associates will not be happy, no not at all, about having their dinner escape."

Ivan narrowed his eyes and allowed a few words. "Truly I am sorry you and your kind might waste away, but it was certainly clever of you to use the mermen to trap us. Without a loud and deafening distraction, it is nearly impossible to ignore their calls. Though I have to wonder how you forced them to do it, and once I'm through with you I'm freeing them."

This time he could clearly see the too sharp fangs in that smile, even from the slight distance. "They do it because they value their lives. Would you care for a demonstration? I still haven't punished them for tipping you off to my plan."

"No!" Came a desperate cry, as the dark haired merman swam forward and pounded against the glass. "I told you it was me and me alone! Don't hurt them too, they didn't do anything!"

Arthur tsked and pulled out a remote, while Ivan was caught between watching him and the tank. "I'm sure this will serve as a lesson to all three of you." Then he pressed a button on the remote.

In an instant, electricity surged through the water, and all three screamed and writhed as they were electrocuted. Their singing had been wonderful, divine even, but their screams were terribly depressing and heart-wrenching, and it was all Ivan could do to keep from covering his ears.

After a few more seconds of torture, Arthur switched off the flow and the merman floated slowly to the base of the tank, the blue tailed and purple tailed ones falling unconscious shortly after while the red tailed one struggled to stay awake and glare at Arthur. But he too eventually caved, and now it was just Arthur and Ivan. "That was unforgivable. I'm going to enjoy burning your body."

"You can certainly try."

Ivan pulled out his crossbow and slung it around his back, then took out his hunting knife and tossed his bag to the side, storing the extra wooden bolts in his pants pocket. Then he lifted his cross necklace to let it rest outside his clothing. Now he waited for the next move.

He didn't have to wait long. In a blur, Arthur disappeared, reappearing right in front of him, that damn smile in place, and lifted a hand to try and quickly pierce his heart, looking for an easy kill. Ivan used the flat of the blade and his arm to deflect the blow, spinning around and aiming the knife at Arthur's back. He missed, as Arthur lunged forward, rolled back onto his feet, caught his footing and sprang back at him, the force of the hit knocking Ivan on his back, but he used Arthur's momentum to knock the vampire off of him, using his feet to kick the man up and over him. He got up quickly and ripped his jacket off roughly, throwing it to the side and getting back in stance. Arthur had recovered as well and had done the same, even taking the time to roll his sleeves up. They regarded each other briefly.

When was the last time he'd been in a fight like this? With adrenaline running through his veins and excitement at the thought of maiming Arthur coursing through him, it was hard to remember why he'd left this life in the first place. Confident in his abilities and advantages, Ivan grinned.

Arthur didn't get a chance to react to it as two large arms closed over his middle, pinning his arms to his sides. A coldness seeped into his back and one look down told him all he needed to know. "You have a spectre? Interesting. Not many choose to help their charges, yet yours did so without prompting."

"If I could get rid of him I would; he's very persistent. But I cannot fault him, because it is as you said: family is family, right?" Knowing that Winter would not be affected by any of his weapons, Ivan lunged at the two. He held his knife to strike Arthur's heart, but the man twisted just so, making him miss his mark and impale a shoulder instead. Arthur hissed and blurred away, taking the knife with him. He reappeared on the other side of the room, yanked the knife out and tossed it to the ground. Winter made himself invisible as Ivan stood his ground.

"You're going to regret that," Arthur growled, no longer smiling as he disappeared. He didn't show himself for several seconds, and Ivan was incredibly tense until the vampire reappeared only long enough to punch him in the face before disappearing again. Then he repeated the action, this time hitting Ivan's side. Ivan caught onto Arthur's plan, and took a defensive stance again, pulling out two wooden bolts. The next time Arthur appeared, Ivan took the hit in order to stab Arthur in the arm with a bolt, and immediately the man's skin began to burn and purify. Arthur yelled out in pain and blurred to the other side of the room again.

Originating from the bolt, black vein like markings stared to engulf Arthur's arm, and gritting his teeth he yanked the wooden stick out before throwing it to the floor, hand burned as well. He glared at Ivan, more and more of his composure slipping as his pupils elongated and claws formed on his hands. Shaking with rage at being injured while his prey remained unharmed, Arthur, this time, appeared right in front of Ivan, dodged the attempted stab, grasped Ivan's wrist and used his body to lift the man and slam him on the floor, denting the wood with the force he used.

Ivan gasped wetly, squeezing his eyes shut as his back screamed with pain. Arthur was standing over him, ready to deal the killing blow when a cold force slammed into the vampire's side, knocking him away and into a wall. Winter then took Ivan's hand and hefted the man up, steadying him on his feet as he glared at Arthur for hurting his grandson. He may not have been in Ivan's life much when he'd been alive, but he'd be damned if he let beasts like Arthur hurt one of his family members if he could stop it.

Wiping a line of blood from his mouth, Ivan looked to Winter and nodded. Winter returned it and went over to Arthur, grabbing the vampire's hair and bringing him over to Ivan, who readied another wooden bolt. When Arthur and Winter were close enough, Ivan stabbed the wooden bolt into Arthur's side, prolonging his death because he didn't like the vampire and wanted to see him suffer.

"Do not mess around. Finish him."

Ivan glared at Winter for ruining his fun, but prepared to stab Arthur in the throat when a figure appeared in the room, gasping and holding his chest. Ivan and Winter looked over, but only caught a glimpse before, in a panic, the mysterious man blurred over, latched onto Arthur, and disappeared.

Ivan blinked as Arthur disappeared, and when him and the other vampire(who looked remarkably like Arthur)didn't return, he figured the addition had come to rescue Arthur and treat his wounds. Ivan sighed.

"That is why you don't wait to kill. Now you are going to have to confront him again."

"You don't know that. I beat him. He knows he was about to die, it would be foolish of him to return."

"Not if he brought help."

Ivan paused, remembering what his father had told him once. If you do not kill an enemy, there is always a chance they'll return stronger and with numbers. If one ever gets away, hunt it down and finish what you started.

"Fine, but I'll deal with that later." Winter left and Ivan went over to the tank, watching the unconscious fish for any sign of recovery. When they only moved with the current, Ivan sighed again and left to look for a way to drain the water or get in the tank itself. He'd told Arthur he'd rescue the mermen, and he was going to do just that.

After traversing the absurdly large house, he located a door which lead to the top of the tank, and he was thankful there even was a way into it, as he really didn't want to have to break into the glass, given how thick it was. That would require bombs.

He took off his scarf, his vest and under shirt, then emptied out his pants pockets and toed his shoes and socks off. Then he breathed for a bit, steadying the pounding of his heart, and dove into the cool water.

He swam to the bottom as quickly as he could, grabbed the red tailed one, and swam back up top, breaking the surface and gasping for breath. Treading water, he slapped the merman's cheek gently, rousing him from slumber.

Groaning, the merman brought a hand to his head and opened red eyes, brows drawing when he saw Ivan giving him a pointed look. Then he remembered the electricity and gasped, slipping out of Ivan's hold and diving back to the bottom. Ivan swam over to the ledge and lifted himself to sit with his legs still in the water. A few seconds later, the red tailed one had managed to awaken his brothers, and all three swam to the surface.

This was by far the closest he'd ever been to any merfolk, and it was almost like a fairy tale for a second. The water was clear enough that he could see their tails, so the illusion they were human wasn't complete, but their features were so alike; How did merfolk even come to be, he wondered, to have such a similarity with humans?

"Are you three alright?"

"Yeah," the dark haired one said, sighing and grinning. "We're tougher than we look, and I know it's horrible, but we're pretty used to the aftereffects of being electrocuted like that."

"Doesn't mean it feels good," the blue tailed one said, and the red head laughed and wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "True, but you've always been a little baby when it came to pain."

The blue tailed one turned an indignant shade of red and shoved the red head off. "Shut up, I have not!"

Ivan was startled to find himself smiling at their display, reminded of the time before his life had been military drills and lessons on killing, when it had just been him, his sisters, and his parents. He couldn't remember the last time he and his sisters acted like siblings, so this display of familial affection was nice to see.

"If you don't mind me asking, do you have names?"

"Uh, well we have names but not ones you could understand, since they're in our language and all," the red head said, shrugging, "But we can use the names Arthur gave us."

"Alright, well I'm Ivan."

"James," the red tailed one said.

"Alfred," the blue tailed one said.

The last one hesitated, sinking lower into the water. "Come one bro, don't be shy. He saved our lives," Alfred said, nudging his brother, who said, "Matthew," quickly before ducking back down.

"James, Alfred, and Matthew. It is a pleasure to meet you three, but I'm afraid we must be leaving. I do not know when the police will get here and I'd rather not risk losing you three. They will understand that Arthur was a vampire, but most likely they will try to sell everything here, including you all, and I promised myself I would help." He looked to them. "Unless you do not want it?"

They looked at each other, then looked at Ivan before sinking below the water, and even though Ivan could hear them speaking, it was all in their own language so the topic was lost on him. Tapping his fingers against the wet wood he was sitting on, he waited patiently for them to reach a consensus.

"Okay," James said, once they were out of the water. "We'll go, but there's something we'd like you to do for us."

Ivan raised an eyebrow but waited him to continue. "We're not from around here, as far as we can tell. We would appreciate it if you could help us find our way back home."

"Okay, so you want to return to the ocean. Do you know where you lived before?"

"No."

Ivan blinked, frowning. "No? You don't know where you lived before Arthur brought you here."

"Nope!"

"Do you know where we are know?"

"Uh, somewhere called America? Or the United States? I kept hearing those to words, but I don't know which we're in," Alfred informed.

"They are the same, the United States of America. At least you know where we are...hm." He supposed it wouldn't be too much trouble to help them. Of course he'd have to use vacation time from his job because he had no idea how long they'd be gone, but it wasn't like he was going to use it for an actual vacation anytime soon. Plus, he could ask around for Arthur's location at the same time.

"Okay, let's just get you out of here before we work on the specifics."


	3. Chapter 3

There was of course just one problem.

"Do any of you happen to know how to change fully human?" Ivan asked, standing up and getting dressed again, ignoring for now the wetness of his pants. His car was about to get wet anyway, it didn't really matter.

"I don't think so," Alfred said, James and Matthew nodding along to confirm.

"It figures," Ivan sighed, wondering why his life couldn't be easy. He was only twenty six and had enough action and complication in his life to equal that of two life times.

"Right, well, I'm going to go look for towels to make my life a little easier, then I'll come back and get you all, okay?" He was at the door when he paused, turning back to them. "Do any of you know where some towels might be?"

"Yeah, just to the left at the end there. There's a cabinet if I remember correctly," James supplied, and Ivan nodded, following the instructions and ignoring how someone confined to water would know that. He returned with four of the largest towels he could find. Dropping them to the floor, he unfolded one and stared at the mermen. "Who's first?"

"You should go Mattie," the other two both urged, pushing him forward. He glared weakly at them and slapped their hands away before grabbing onto the ledge and lifting himself easily out of the water. Ivan held the towel down so it wouldn't be disturbed by Matthew's shuffling as he scooted himself onto the it. Ivan wrapped the ends any way he could around Matthew, then hefted the merman into his arms. "I'll be right back."

"Take your time," James said, floating back into the water. Alfred followed him.

Ivan walked down to the meeting hall, gaze straight ahead but he could see Matthew glancing over at him every couple of steps. Making sure to catch the gaze when it landed on him again, he asked, "Is something wrong? You seem fidgety."

"No, no. I'm just curious about...why you're helping us? I mean, don't mistake my words, I'm very happy to be getting away from this house, but what reason do you have?"

Ivan hummed as he approached the front door, pausing before anything else. "I'm doing this because I was taught to do the right thing," he said then called out, "Winter!" knowing the ghost was always around him. "Yes?" Came the disembodied voice, causing Matthew to jump. "I need you to turn us invisible in case anyone sees Matthew here and thinks I'm stealing him from Arthur."

Winter responded by placing his hand on Ivan's shoulder, invisible himself, and extending his power towards the duo. Then Ivan walked quickly to his car. "A ghost?" He heard Matthew ask, staring directly at the spot where Winter was. "That's going to be a problem in a little bit."

"Why do you think so?" Ivan asked, then, "Could you get my keys out? They're in my vest pocket, left side."

Matthew found the keys and at Ivan's instruction pressed a button on the biggest key. Ivan opened the door and placed Matthew in the backseat. "How, uh, how long can you go without water?" Probably something he should have asked before he'd started.

"A few hours, at least in this form," Matthew replied, patting the cushions and squeezing them. Ivan sighed in relief and shut the car door, returning to the house to get the next merman.

"Who's next?" He asked, walking to the edge and unfolding the next towel.

"Me!" Alfred grasped onto the ledge and pulled himself up onto the towel, which Ivan had held closer to the ledge. He wrapped him up the same as with Matthew, then lifted Alfred into his arms and made the short trip to his car. While walking through a hallway bathed in sunlight, the wetness in Alfred's hair did nothing to stop its natural glow, and Ivan found himself staring as they walked in silence.

"Thank you for doing this," Alfred said, jolting Ivan out of his trance and drawing his attention to Alfred. "It is no problem, I assure you. I am not one to enjoy the capture of those like yourself; I prefer it they be free to live their lives the way they want to, not under the limitations of petty beasts like Arthur."

"Well you're the only one I've ever heard say that. But it's nice to know someone wants to free us." Then Alfred placed his hands on either side of Ivan's face and stared into his eyes. "You know, I don't see many humans with purple colored eyes. Yours are very pretty, like the sky when its getting dark, that's called twilight right?" Clearly Alfred didn't know much about the human's definition of personal space, but the compliment was not unwelcome. Ivan ducked his head slightly as a bashful smile made its way onto his face. "T-Thank you. But I am nothing special. It is you who...uh," suddenly realizing what he was doing, he stopped talking and focused more on getting to his car, speeding up even. He was not supposed to get close to the victims he saved. He'd seen it happen to others time and time again, had Winter tell him stories of those who fell in love and sacrificed their lives. He vowed a long time ago to not be affected by those he saved, human or not.

But Alfred would not let the subject go. "It's me who is...what?," he said, sly smile on his face like he knew exactly what he was but wanted to hear Ivan say it anyways. Ivan cleared his throat. "I'm sure you know exactly what you are."

Alfred smile and said nothing more, and when they arrived at the front door Ivan called out for Winter again. Alfred looked confused. "Winter? Isn't that a season?"

Ivan chuckled at that. "Yes, it is a very cold season, precisely why I call him that. He's my grandfather."

"Oh," Alfred said, but when Winter said, "The same, I presume?" it startled Alfred so bad he almost flopped right out of Ivan's arms. He wrapped his arms around Ivan's neck and looked around. "W-What was t-that?"

Was this what Matthew had been referring to? Feeling Winter's cold hand on his shoulder, he made his way to his car again. "I told you it's my grandfather." Alfred only shook as the cold seeped from Winter to Ivan then to himself, face paling. "You d-didn't tell me he was a g-g-gh...dead!" And Alfred brought his head up to glare at Ivan but caught sight of the towering entity and yelped, burying his face in Ivan's scarf clad neck. So Alfred was afraid of ghosts. Potentially problematic, given the fact Alfred would have to travel with him if he wanted to get home safely, and Winter wouldn't leave his side due to his sudden sense of justice about making up his wrongdoings to his grandson.

They made it to the car quickly, the door unlocked already. As soon as he placed Alfred down on the cushions, he reached over and hugged Matthew, who understood his fear and comforted him as best he could, though his face was oddly unsympathetic.

Shutting the door, Ivan made his way to the last merman, who was floating on his back as he stared at the ceiling. "Alright, come on," Ivan said, slinging the fourth towel around his neck as he laid the third one out. James lifted himself up just as easily if not easier than the other two had, and Ivan wondered if all three had super strength or something, because he knew how difficult it could be to do that, and they weren't exactly as light as feathers with their tails and all.

James had a devious smile as he said, "Oh, a strong man, I like that." when Ivan lifted him up. It made Ivan blush as he walked back to the greeting hall, unaccustomed to such compliments.

"Don't get any ideas."

"Oh I have plenty of ideas."

When Winter made them both invisible, James laughed at him. "A ghost huh? How'd Alfred take that?"

"It would have been nice to know he didn't favor ghosts to begin with, though it is not the most pressing of matters right now. He did almost fall out of my arms, however."

"Yeah, he's never liked ghosts, but doesn't seem to mind other types of undead. Me and Mattie still don't know how he got that fear."

They reached the car and he placed James next to Alfred, who detached from Matthew and practically squeezed the life out of James. Then he reached over and tugged Matthew closer to himself, so as to be sandwiched between them. James and Matthew sighed, and James patted Alfred's back for a few seconds before shoving Alfred away. "By the Gods, you're such a little bitch. It was just one ghost!"

"Shut up, jerk! You know I don't like them."

The whole scene was oddly fascinating, their familial relations so similar to that of human brothers. He walked to the driver's seat, Winter's cold presence permeating the air around them. He saw Alfred shiver in the rear view mirror and decided he'd have to talk to Winter about Alfred's problem.

The drive back was silent, time passing slowly in the quiet and slightly awkward atmosphere. Ivan kept looking back at the trio while simultaneously trying to come up with a plan to help them, the three brothers were gazing out the windows and curled up next to each other, and all the while Winter's presence laid a thick and cool but not exactly pleasant weight on them.

Ivan had a feeling his life was going to become very uncertain in the next coming weeks.

After struggling all three mermen into his unit, Ivan walked into the bathroom, where the mermen were sitting side by side in the bathtub. They were too big to all fit in there though, so their tails draped over the ledge and created obstacles for Ivan, who made his way to the water dials.

"Do you need to breathe it or...?" He may have been all for helping them and knew techniques useful for doing just that, but this was a moment where he started to realize that in situations like this—when he had to care for those he saved—he wouldn't know the first thing to do.

"Nah, we just need water to hydrate our tails. You know, worst case scenario we die, best case we pass out if that happens. We don't necessarily need to breathe or drink it to get it in our systems because our tail can do it for us," James replied, sitting in the middle with his arms on either side of his brothers. Ivan nodded and asked, "So, do you prefer hot water, cold water, or room temperature? Or do you need some sort of solution, like salt water?"

"Ocean water is the best, obviously, but cold water should work just fine."

Ivan noticed the 'should.' "Are you certain?"

He shrugged, but by the way none of them looked too terribly worried in case it wouldn't work, Ivan let it go and started the bath, stopping the water when it got past their waists. Then he sat back to address them. "I will look for a witch or wizard to help you, there should be one around to my knowledge, if she hasn't moved yet. I'm sorry you have to remain in here but this is the best I could do."

"That's fine, you've done more than we could have asked," James said, and right after Alfred said, "Thanks again, for helping us out. You didn't have to do this, but it means a lot to us." The other two nodded and Ivan smiled. "Its no problem as I've said, I don't mind helping those in need. Its what I was taught to do, after all." He stood up and left them to call the witch he hoped was still in town. He felt Winter next to him.

"I thought you didn't like your past," he heard and he chuckled, already knowing Winter was going to say something along those lines. "Yeah, well, at times like this...everything was worth it." Winter hummed and let him be, and Ivan welcomed the quiet as he flipped through his address book. When he found the number he wanted, he picked up his phone and dialed it.

_Ringing. Ringing...Please answer, I don't want this to drag out—_

"Hello?"

"Liz, it's Ivan. I need your help, if you're available."

"Yeah I'm—well, I'm thankful you called actually. What do you need?"

"...Long story short I have some mermen that need legs. I can explain in greater detail when you get here."

"That is certainly interesting. I thought you were done with that...But, it is as you said, you will explain. Okay, give me some time to close up shop and I'll be right over."

"Thank you," Ivan said, and he hung up.

Debating on what to do next, eventually he decided and walked into the bathroom. "Are any of you hungry?"

"By the Gods, I thought you'd never ask, I'm starving," Alfred said, an equally ravenous look on James face. Matthew rolled his eyes at his brothers.

"So you're all hungry?"

"Yep," Matthew affirmed.

"Okay, I don't know what I have that will feed all four of us...I might have to go shopping. Now that I think of it..." he trailed off, observing the mermen carefully. "We will need to get you three clothes."

"Ugh, why are humans so modest and cover everything up?" Alfred complained. Ivan shrugged and pulled at his clothes, which he noticed were the ones still damp from his swim. "I would guess because we are taught to wear them from birth. I'd rather not wait, so when Liz gets here and changes you three, we're going out."

He got three varied agreements and walked back out of the bathroom, heading to his room to change. He'd have to look for some smaller clothes of his, if he had any, otherwise the three boys would have nothing to wear. They were tall, only a little shorter than him, but he was a much thicker, burlier man compared to the lithe build merfolk tended to have for speed. His clothes would look awkward on them but there wasn't much else he could do about it.

Once dry, he opened the safe in his room and pulled out a credit card, rubbing the surface as memories came to him, but he had no time for nostalgia and willed them away, sliding the card into his wallet. He walked into the kitchen and was going through inventory when he heard a knock at the door.

Not bothering to look through the peep hole, he opened the door and held it open for Liz, who he saw had her hands full with jars and a thick book. "Thanks," she said, setting her burden heavily on the table and letting out a breath. She flashed him a smile. "So, where are they? Or would you rather get the explanation out of the way first?"

Taking the latter choice, Ivan told Liz all about the interview, the party, Arthur and the similar looking vampire who saved him, and finally helping the mermen to his home. Liz was quiet through the recount, and had a contemplative look on her face by the end of it. "That is quite the story. I never would have guessed Arthur to be a vampire, but I suppose the signs were there, if you looked hard enough. And I'm guessing you would like my help locating him as well, correct? You are going to hunt him down, right?"

Ivan nodded. "Yes, I was planning on asking after you changed the mermen, but there is another thing I would like to request." Liz prompted him to go on. "I am to return them safely home, but they don't know where they lived before Arthur brought them here. I would really appreciate it if you could look in to that."

"It shouldn't be too difficult," she said, fingers tapping against her lips as she mentally went over all the inventory she'd brought with her and had stored at her shop. "I suppose a simple scrying could work, I have enough for that, as long as I have something of theirs."

Now that might be a problem. Now that he thought about it, the only thing they were wearing was a set of pearls around various parts of their bodies, and he didn't think those counted as belonging to them. Maybe hair...

"Let's deal with that later, right now we should focus on changing them human."

"Right, I have just the thing for that..." she trailed off, rifling through her assortment of items. She alternated between flipping through her book and looking for different items Ivan had no idea the names or functions of. He'd never been too interested in magic and those who pursued it. Unless they went bad, in which case they became Ivan's number one concern.

"Do you want to do it in the bathroom or out here?" He honestly had no clue as to the proper protocol, if there even was one, to doing something like this. It wasn't his fault he was taught to fight first and ask questions later, even if he'd gotten that out of his system.(He was a little rash at times though.)

"Out here for convenience, seeing as how all my belongings are out here. I can also change all three at a time so bring them all in." Ivan nodded even knowing she wouldn't see, as she was wrapped up in her book and crushing plants in a bowl. Turning, he walked into the bathroom and nearly tripped, needing to grab onto the counter's edge to steady himself as small beads rolled under his feet. Upon closer inspection, he saw they were pearls.

"Sorry about that. They were getting kinda uncomfortable but the slippery little devils wouldn't stay still. Didn't mean to almost take ya out." Ivan looked up and even though he was apologizing, James had an amused grin on his face, as did Alfred, though Matthew looked a little concerned. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. The witch is here, she'll change you three and then I'll try to find you some clothes so we can go shopping. I really want to get that out of the way." He started draining the tub and held his hand out to Alfred, since the man was closest to him. With his tail over the edge of the tub it was easy to heft him into a sitting position and from there pick the blond up. Making sure to keep one eye on the ground so he wouldn't almost fall and hurt himself or Alfred, he made his way to the living room.

Liz was too engrossed to spare more than a glance at their entrance, so Ivan set Alfred down on the couch and left to get the other two. He detoured to his hall closet to get out a broom then returned to the bathroom, sweeping the pearls to the side. They weren't his and he had no interest in them. As childish as it may have been he delighted in the knowledge that most likely expensive jewelery of Arthur's was getting treated like trash.

Propping the broom against the wall, he helped James into a sitting position like with Alfred and brought the man to his brother on the couch. He left and returned shortly with Matthew.

"Alright whenever you're ready. Do you need anything?" Ivan asked Liz, who turned her attention to Ivan and let her gaze then sweep over the three young mermen on the couch. A smile twitched at her lips. "No thank you, but they might need towels to cover themselves with when they are human." Ivan wiped his hand down his face, sure that caring and watching over the three new additions was going to run him into the ground. They were ignorant of modern human laws and customs and terribly, horribly attractive and Ivan did not just think that and was going to get some towels as per Liz's suggestion, yes that was a good thing to do.

While Ivan sulked around and looked for clean towels, Liz introduced herself to Ivan's new charges. "Hello, I'm sure Ivan's already told you why I'm here. My name's Erzsébet, but you can call me Liz, it's much easier to remember. Now, what are your names?"

"I'm Alfred!" "James." "My name's Matthew."

Liz repeated the names in her head while looking over each merman. She noticed something immediately. "You know, your colorings are very peculiar." She saw Ivan re-enter the living room, towels bundled under his arms. She held her hand out and he gave one to her. She smoothed it out over Alfred's lap, as she was in front of him and he was in the middle. Then she reached up to cup the side of Alfred's face with one hand and the side of James's face with the other, slowly bringing their heads together. "You two are obviously twins, despite your color variations." Then she moved her left hand off Alfred to Matthew and her right hand off James to Alfred, slowly bringing Matthew and Alfred together. "But you two have very similar color schemes, blond hair, a shade of blue for eyes. Even your build is more alike than the twins'." She dropped her hands and sat back on her heels. "Care to explain? I'm very fascinated."

"Oh if I had an oyster's pearl every time I heard that one. Me and Alfie here," and James slung an arm around his twin, "have the same mother, while all three of us have the same father. I get my red from good old mom, while Alfred and Matthew get their colors from dad."

"Interesting. Ah, sorry if I seem intrusive but I have this thing for biology and especially when it's applied to non-humans. Just the fact you two are twins yet different colors and that all three of you look similar in some way is astounding. And I—"

"—think it's about time to be moving along, yes?" Ivan finished for her. He didn't mind her asking them questions, but did she have to do it right at the moment? They had things to do. She could talk all she wanted with them when they got back. The sun was already starting to dip below the horizon and Ivan just wanted this day to end.

"Right, sorry, Gil's always teasing me about my tendency to fly off on a tangent." She straightened herself out and walked back over to her book and bowl. With an ease that could only come from years of practice and a confidence that only grew the more she aged, Liz finished the liquid concoction that would turn the mermen human. Ivan handed James and Matthew towels to place over their laps.

"Okay, so have any of you changed before?"

They all nodded, which greatly surprised Liz and Ivan. "You've all changed forms?" It wasn't uncommon for merfolk to be in a human form, but since they couldn't do it themselves their circumstances always included a witch or wizard of some kind. And not all sea witches were evil, nor did the exchanges require a tongue for payment, but some were and some required other parts, so usually deals were less under water and more above.

"Arthur liked to have us changed and see how we effected people when out of the water, or lure people to his parties," Alfred explained. "And while our ability to entrance others works the best in water, it lingers enough when in human form to pose a threat to us. You'd be surprised the number of times one of us had to fight someone away, or call for help, though Arthur usually ended up killing the offender so we stopped doing that," Alfred mused.

"The point is yes, we are experienced in being fully human," Matthew said, politely and subtly ending Alfred's story before it began. He knew very well how much Alfred loved to talk at times, and without a firm hand to stop him, he'd continue on.

And on.

And on.

He loved his brother very much but he wasn't above slapping him across the face to get him to shut the hell up if he had to(though he knew he was too polite to do something like that, 'cause all Alfred had to do was flash big puppy-dog eyes at him and he crumbled within the second at that look. James lasted longer but couldn't resist the look either. Alfred could be one manipulative bastard when he wanted to be).

"That is good, so I don't need to explain anything. But, I didn't think of your enchantments, hm...I could add something to suppress it, if you'd like?"

"Really? That would be greatly appreciated!" Matthew said, nodding eagerly at the suggestion. Liz smiled and went back to her book, skimming the words on a page before adding something to her potion. Then she returned to them.

"Alright, this potion will turn you human until you take another potion to turn you back. It will not fade away nor will it become ineffective once you're in water, so try and remember that." Suddenly they didn't look that excited.

"It won't go away by itself? So we're going to be stuck like that?" The worry was obvious in Alfred's voice as he asked that, clearly not comfortable with the idea of being confined to human form. Liz patted his tail, roughly were his knee would be. "Relax, Alfred. I can make more potions to bring with you on your journey if you want to change back for any reason. I think I'll make more than one for each actually, so you can change back multiple times whenever necessary. Okay?"

He relaxed, the tense look fading away from all three. Ivan made a note to himself about their reaction to staying human. He could see in that moment, a sharp fear had entered their postures, spines going rigid and eyes wide. He had a feeling they'd have to change back every once in a while to feel comfortable and he almost sighed because that was just going to waste time. But it's not like he could do anything about it so he'd have to accept it, unless he somehow managed to ease them into accepting human form until they were returned to their home. Either way was going to require effort on Ivan's part.

"Alright, if there are no more questions then take this. Just a sip each will work," Liz instructed, handing the bowl to Matthew. He peered into the greenish liquid, unsure, but took a tentative sip anyway. The potion tasted bland and unremarkable, leaving his mouth feeling dry. He passed the liquid to Alfred, who took a mouthful like it was his favorite drink, not minding the taste at all. His brothers often liked to tease him that he had no sense of taste because he would eat anything in front of him but he didn't see how that was a bad thing. He handed the potion to James who drank the rest of it.

When nothing happened for a few seconds, they looked at Liz. "Did...it work or...?" Alfred wondered, but Liz held up her hand.

"Just give it a moment. You didn't think it'd work immediately, did you?"

"Yes! That's what magic does!"

Liz waved her hand again as if to dismiss such claims. "Maybe fairy tale magic, but this is the real life. There are certain things, like basic biology, which need to be taken into account. Nothing is digested and absorbed on the spot. It takes a few minutes, so just hang out and the potion will kick in eventually." She put a hand to her cheek, tapping a finger against it in thought. "Actually, if you've been changed before, wouldn't you know this? Didn't Arthur explain anything when he did it?"

At that James snorted and relaxed more on the couch while Matthew and Alfred looked down. Those were not good times they liked to remember. "As if that stuck up leech would tell us anything. He didn't give us a choice when he changed us. We were knocked out and when we woke up, we had legs." He clenched his fists, a spike of anger coursing through him. The first time they'd woken up as humans, Alfred and Matthew had been near hysteric, and while he himself had been breathing rapidly and his thoughts were drowned out by a white noise sort of buzzing, he had to play the part of big brother and calm them down. That had been when they'd stopped seeing each other as brothers of equal age, but instinctively turned to James as the eldest, despite him and Alfred being the same age.

"Oh, I see. I'm sorry you've had such a bad experience with magic. It really hurts to know some out there still try and use it for the wrong reasons. Gives us a bad name, just look at the vampires!" Liz ranted, shifting from one topic to the other fairly easily. Oh no, Ivan mentally groaned, here we go about the vampires. He liked Liz, he really did, she was very passionate about freedom and equality for all, but she could rant and be down right scary when she wanted to.

"Vampires are no more dangerous than lions, or sharks even! Just because they drink blood from humans doesn't mean they have to be hunted down like wild animals! Humans kill lions sometimes and you don't see them coming out to kill us, do you?" Ivan shook his head when she glanced at him, agreeing because he'd heard this argument before and the woman must be thrilled to inform new people about the vampires' plight. Though he did agree with her truly, as he was raised to believe not all non-human creatures were bad and that sometimes, it was the humans who were in the wrong.

"It's downright barbaric is what it is. Innocent people have been killed because they were thought to know where a vampire was, and..." She trailed off seeing the look on the three brothers' faces, eyes wide in bewilderment at her sudden rant. She crossed her arms and turned to the table holding her stuff. "Sorry, I didn't mean to tangent again. I'll start working on extra potions for your trip. It should actually start taking effect soon, so if you have clothes ready, Ivan, you may want to bring them out?" She commented casually, skimming through her book.

"Yes, I do," Ivan said, remembering the clothes he'd laid out when he'd gone to fetch the towels. They were the smallest he could find and even then he was sure they'd be too big in some way. He quickly retrieved them, returning to the living room. He was curious to see how the tail would morph into legs. One thing he and Liz shared was an interest in the physiology of the supernatural. From werewolf transformations to nagas and merpeople, their biology and physiology were oddly fascinating. Since their discovery a few years back, many scientists had switched to supernatural studies. Growing up, Ivan had been taught this along with human biology, and that was were the interest took root. The information had been not nearly as expansive as it was now, but what they knew, he'd learned. He may have been taught to be indifferent to everything except his mission, and even then taught to be cold and ruthless, that didn't mean he wouldn't learn as much as he could, and this was really a once in a life time experience for him to witness(though apparently he'd be seeing it a lot more in the near future).

He walked into the living room just as they started to change. It was a gradual thing, very slow and painless, going by the look on their faces. The tails' colors started fading to their upper half skin tone, and a seem split their tail's into two parts. The very bottom of the tails shrunk and formed into toes, while the rest of the color faded and what was left were two distinct legs for each man.

"Wow," Matthew murmured, lifting his legs up and down. Alfred wiggled his toes and James pushed on various parts of his legs, pinching here and there.

"What's this?" Matthew asked, pointed to something by his ankle. Ivan and Liz leaned in to see it. Very faded but still visible purple scales looked ingrained in his skin.

"That's an effect of the potion. As a consequence of making it last permanently, the effect isn't as great. While it gives you legs, some scales might linger. It's the best potion I could make in such a short time."

Matthew ran his fingers over the smooth scales while Alfred and James searched their own legs. Alfred had a patch on the side of his knee, and James had a patch on his shin. There seemed to be only one on each merman.

"Huh," James said, tracing the outline of his scales. It felt like glass, smooth and transparent, and the light red scales were nearly seamless with the surrounding skin.

"Can you stand?" Ivan asked all of them, silently praying to whoever was listening that he wouldn't have to teach them to walk.

James tried first, holding his towel to him as he hefted himself off the couch, wobbling for a moment before steadying himself. He held a hand out for Alfred, who used the offered limb to hoist himself up as well, wobbling much like his brother before standing tall. He in turn helped Matthew up, and, thankfully, they could all at least stand with ease. Ivan let out a sigh.

"Thank God," he muttered. Liz heard and rolled her eyes.

"Lighten up Ivan! Where's the fun without discovery and learning? You really need to get out more."

Ivan ignored her. "Can you walk too?"

"Yeah yeah, give us a minute will ya? It's been awhile since we've had legs," James snapped, almost tripping when he turned to face Ivan. His pinwheeling arms and curses take away from his previous tone of annoyance, making Ivan roll his eyes and very pointedly look at Liz. _You see? This is part of the reason I never got too involved with my charges._

Liz had no words for him, only a kind look as she picked up her supplies and returned to the table.

"Now, everyone can get dressed and than we can go shopping!"

Ivan handed each brother a set of clothes. "They will be too big but they'll have to do until we get you all better suited clothes. Get dressed so we can go."

Ivan turned around quick when they all seemed to forget about privacy and dropped their towels to grab the clothes. Liz had a knowing smile on her face and Ivan glared at her for it. These three were going to be the death of him.


	4. Chapter 4

If he didn't die from some grand battle with an overpowered villain somewhere in the future, he'd probably end up in jail from going insane and becoming a homicidal maniac. And boy, the universe sure seemed to enjoy pushing the most likely people to trigger that change unto him.

Like the snippy, annoying bastard who followed Liz around like a lost puppy, or more recently, the two mermen who were dead set on making his life a living hell. Through some merciful God the third brother had been gifted with common sense, but the other two were a lost cause, which was too bad for them because Ivan was about five minutes from murdering them.

"Look at how tall this place is! And all this stuff! Wow!"

"Dude, come check this out, you won't believe this!"

"Hey, don't go wandering off—" But Ivan was ignored as Alfred and James ran into the electronics section. Maybe he should have gone to Target alone. He surely wouldn't have a headache at the moment if he had. He wished Liz was here instead, he should have offered to wait for Gilbert to arrive at his apartment and let her deal with the mermen. Her iron fist when it came to shopping wasn't something easily ignored. The woman could be damn scary if she wanted to.

"Um, is something wrong?" Matthew asked from beside him. This one, thank God, was the light of his life right now. This one he liked.

"No, everything's fine," Ivan said, sighing with defeat. His words contrasted greatly with his tightly clenched fists and the almost palpable aura of rage around him.

Matthew fidgeted with the ends of his overly large shirt, distress weighing his features down. "It's my brothers, isn't it?" He said, dropping his gaze to his hands as he twisted the shirt around his fingers.

Ivan started walking towards the electronics section, his mind set on getting the two brothers, getting what they came for, and leaving as quick as possible. He didn't feel like getting kicked out of the store, especially at such a late hour. He heard Matthew catch up to him, but the merman walked slightly behind him. It made him wonder if Matthew—or any of them—had been to a store like this before. From what they told him they'd been in a human form before, but had Arthur let them out of the house? With how wily Alfred and James were, his guess was most likely not.

"Let us get what we came for, and leave," Ivan said, glancing over at Matthew. "Do you know all your sizes for clothes?"

"Uh...yeah, I think. It's been awhile since we wore clothes, but I still remember all ours, if they don't. Clothing isn't something they find...necessary, even with legs. I don't find anything wrong with it."

"Great," Ivan muttered, narrowing his eyes as he spotted one of the brothers. Alfred had his hands and face pressed up against the glass of a video game case. "Just what I need, a pair of disobeying, streaking brothers." He scanned the rest of the section but didn't spot the brunet merman anywhere. He was lucky it was so late and there weren't many people in the store at such an hour. "Alfred!" He called, waiting for the blond to give him attention before motioning for the merman to come to him. He didn't appear to want to leave the game case, but walked slowly over to him and Matthew. "Where is your brother?"

Alfred shrugged. "I dunno man, do I look like our mother? I'm not his caretaker."

"You are now. You are all each other's caretakers as far as I'm concerned," Ivan said. He didn't want to waste time searching out the last merman so instead turned to Winter. Though he hated the ghost's tendency to hang around him, even he had to admit that having a ghost around did come in handy at times like these. "Find him and bring him to us."

Invisible, Winter's cold presence left them. Ivan saw Alfred shiver and cross his arms, a distressed look on his face while Matthew appeared less worried and more curious about the things surrounding them. Grabbing each by an arm Ivan turned them round and headed into the men's section. "Come on, let's get this over with."

As expected, finding suitable clothes was much more difficult than it strictly needed to be. Ivan had never experienced such trouble while clothes shopping, not even when he'd gone with his sisters, who were girls and took an unbelievable amount of time shopping. That was a cake walk compared to this.

Winter brought James to them a few minutes after they'd started looking through clothes. He seemed less interested in looking for clothes and more interested in getting his brothers to play games with him, much to Ivan's ire.

Matthew, as Ivan had come to expect, was not fazed by James's cajoling, but Alfred was less inclined to ignore his brother. Aside from looking exactly the same, they had incredibly similar personalities. It made for a bad match when the two of them were together to create mass chaos. What exactly was Ivan getting into?

After about the millionth time of James and Alfred passing him, he finally grabbed the backs of their shirts, stopping them in their tracks while also slightly choking them. The smile of satisfaction that wanted to come up was kept suppressed by his ever growing anger.

"Will you two pick out some clothes so we can go home?" Ivan hissed, glaring at Alfred and James before pushing them roughly toward a rack of shirts. Graceful even out of water, it took little effort to right themselves and keep from falling. Ivan knew that if they really didn't want to be caught, they wouldn't be. They were toying with him.

"Oh come on!" James whined, leaning against the nearest shelving display and crossing his arms. "This is boring."

"I'm sorry you aren't having a good time," Ivan said with quite the bite to his words. "If you want to remain in those clothes for our travels then please, by all means go wait outside by the car."

James huffed and glared, turning around and walking a little ways away. Ivan was pleased to see him start sorting through some clothes.

"Don't be mad at him," Alfred said, smiling, a few shirts and jeans already in his arms. "He enjoys being like this too much, and we never left the house when we had legs before."

"Is that so?" Ivan said. "Arthur kept you locked in the house?"

"Well, not locked per say. We just had no reason to leave, not when Arthur provided everything we could want. Besides, we didn't really like being in this form the first few times it happened, right Matthew?"

Matthew looked up from a rack. He raised an eyebrow. "As I remember it, you kept falling over because you couldn't get a handle on walking, and James was—"

"Doing perfectly fine, thank you very much," James cut in, elbowing Matthew. There was a large pile of clothes in his arms. "Can we go yet?"

Ivan crossed his arms. "Do those even fit?"

James shrugged.

"Are you two ready?" Ivan asked Matthew and Alfred. Matthew nodded and Alfred gave a thumbs up. Looking back at James, Ivan said, "If those don't fit we're not coming back."

"Whatever."

Oh ho, they were going to be down one merman and up one plate of sushi if James kept the attitude up. Ivan was against killing innocents but...sacrifices sometimes had to be made for the greater good, and in this case, his sanity.

Eager to return home and go to bed, Ivan quickly paid for all the clothes and herded the mermen into his car before speeding back to the sanctuary of his home. He'd expected them—well, not Matthew—to run straight up the stairs to the apartment, but Matthew was playing the part of big brother tonight. He shoved their bags into their arms, thus alleviating Ivan the task of having to carry all the bags himself. Yes, he very much liked Matthew and his sense of responsibility, something the other two clearly lacked, James more so than Alfred.

Gilbert had indeed arrived sometime while they were out, and had already gotten a good head start on making himself at home. The living room had turned into a makeshift den for him and Liz, who were sitting together on the couch, watching TV.

"Did you find everything alright?" Liz asked, untangling herself from Gilbert. She walked up to Ivan and the boys.

"Well enough," Ivan said, dropping the bags on a table. James and Alfred followed his lead, as did Matthew after confirmation. Ivan sorted through the bags and pulled out three sets of pajamas, as well as three toothbrushes. He'd been pleased to learn from Matthew that Arthur, despite not being human himself, had taught them basic human practices, like preparing for bed. Sure made his life a hell of a lot easier not having to explain that to them. "Get changed in the bathroom, brush your teeth, and go to bed. The guest bedroom is down the hall to the right. The bed might be big enough for two of you, there's a mattress made up next to it for one of you."

James grabbed his things and left, while Matthew and Alfred lingered. "Thank you for doing this," Matthew said, taking his stuff and his brother's arm. With supplies in hand Alfred let himself be dragged to the kitchen but turned his head once almost around the corner. "Yeah, thanks," he said with a smile.

Ivan only nodded.

"You sure are getting' cozy with them, ain't ya?" Gilbert said from the couch, his voice grating against Ivan's ears. He'd hoped beyond hope that Gilbert had somehow lost his voice forever from something stupid, but no, he still had to suffer it.

"You shut your mouth. I'm still angry about last year."

"Ugh, what! Dude, that was a year ago! Learn to let go, man, shit like that's not good for you."

"You know what else isn't good for you? A cross jammed down your throat, or a blessed bullet through your brain."

Gilbert held his hands up. "Jeez, man, calm down, I get it, I get it." He rolled his eyes and turned back to the television. "No need to be a dick about it," he muttered.

Any possible violence following Gilbert's statement was prevented by Liz cutting in to the conversation. "Yes yes, pleasantries aside, listen. I told Gilbert the gist of your situation, and he wants to help—we both do. Gilbert hates Arthur and wants him dead just as much as you do, and while I advocate peace between all species, I know that Arthur is rotten to the core. Him alive is only a hindrance towards that goal, I've no doubt his coven grows monthly."

"So you want to come with, is that it? This is becoming much like a fieldtrip for me, and I do not wish to babysit another."

"Hey!"

Liz ignored Gilbert's indignant cry and walked to stand so that Ivan would look away from Gilbert's direction. "I know you like working alone, I get that, but just think about it, okay? Gilbert and I can track his movements a lot quicker and with greater accuracy than you can, no offense. And it makes sense for me to come in case the boys need something magical, you see?"

"Yeah, and if she goes, I go," Gilbert stated from the couch.

"That's what I'm afraid of."

"Wha—Hey!"

Ivan too ignored Gilbert's cry, a small smile on his face. Liz made no attempt to hide her amusement at Gilbert's plight. She loved the idiot, but he sure as hell deserved it. "So what do you say?" Liz said, leaning against the table.

Ivan sighed and rubbed his hands over his face. He didn't want to let them come because he didn't want to have to keep tabs on five people, but Liz was right—a vampire could track another better than any hunter could ever dream of, and a witch was just the smart choice when it came to trackers. Liz especially knew the finer aspects of witchcraft, her skills were second to none.

"What can I say, no? If I know you two, you'll come anyway, just to spite me. I know Gilbert can't resist hanging around those that wish him gone."

"Hey, what the hell is this, rip on Gilbert night? What the fuck man?"

"Oh shush Gilbert," Liz said, looking over Ivan's shoulder. Her smile was disturbingly much like the grinning face of a shark—full of teeth and terrifying She was getting her way and she liked it.

"As long as you keep...this," Ivan stepped back and gestured between the two of them, "to yourselves, then fine, come along if you want. But just know I'm not going to be responsible for either of you." He grabbed the bags of clothes and headed off towards his bedroom. "I have enough to deal with already," he muttered to himself.

* * *

"What!? That's bullshit!"

"That's revenge bitch!"

The muffled yelling coming from beyond the walls had him peeling his eyes open. Usually it took an entire day of bullshit to get a glare and a frown on his face, but as luck would have it, the universe seemed fit to start his days with bullshit. Just fantastic.

The continued yelling and the faint cheering were not going to let him go back to sleep, but when he looked at the clock he found that was acceptable—it was later than he usually awoke. His alarm went off around five, but it was already well past seven, almost eight.

He threw the covers off and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. He stretched before grabbing the alarm clock. It was still set to six, but the volume had mysteriously been turned down to zero. Or perhaps, the volume had  _magically_  been turned down to zero. Dammit, this was why...ugh.

He'd never been so annoyed so early in the morning, but with Gilbert and Liz around, it wasn't a surprise. Plus, the three new additions had already proved to be quite the handful. He was calling it right now, he'd die from stress sometime during his mission.

After another furious yell from the living room and a taunting laugh in response, Ivan was already starting to regret his life. What could have possibly happened to him in a previous life to justify the chaos that was his life now?

He put the alarm clock back and proceeded with his daily morning routine, all the while gritting his teeth as the usual quiet, serene setting of his apartment was ruined by two obnoxious assholes shouting at each other. What they were even doing was lost to him, but he knew it was something stupid.

The yelling had subsided by the time he opened his door and stepped into the hall, though angry grumblings could still be heard from Gilbert. As Ivan walked into the living room, the scene that greeted him was anything but expected.

As suggested by the yelling, James and Gilbert were in a competition of sorts, controllers in hands and eyes glued to the television as they shoved each other and tried to knock the controllers out of each other's hands. Gilbert must have brought the console they were using, because there was no way in hell Ivan would waste money on something like the small black box sitting in front of the television.

Liz was in the kitchen, the source of the amazing smell permeating the room. He'd come to expect surprises out of her, and her ability to cook edible food was one of them. She was an excellent cook despite sometimes using less than ideal ingredients.

Matthew was sitting at the dining table reading a magazine, and Alfred was sitting on the armchair with a small plastic device in his hands, something Ivan recognized immediately. Alfred looked up from the Gameboy and was the first to notice him standing there.

"Good morning!"

"...Morning," he said, taken aback by the domestic scene. He was the only human in the room and yet, no one would be able to tell that that was so.

"Do you know who this is?" Alfred asked, holding the Gameboy up and tilting the screen towards him. He walked up to Alfred and took the device, noticing with fondness the game currently being played was Tetris. On the screen was the high scores, with every slot filled in under the name  _Vanya._

"Just a young boy who used to play" Ivan responded, handing the Gameboy back. Alfred took it and inspected the names, having to squint to see the dark letters.

"Why did he stop? This game's great! It gets really hard and frustrating sometimes but I like it."

Ivan shrugged. "Perhaps he grew up?" He didn't know why he was lying, and when Alfred took his answer and resumed playing, Ivan left it at that. He walked into the kitchen, pleased to find it not completely destroyed like some previous incidents that didn't need to be mentioned. His kitchen had seen better days, that was for sure.

"Oh good, you're awake. Catch up on some sleep?"

"Thanks to you, I'm sure. Don't ever tamper with my alarm again."

Liz held up her hands, a spatula clutched in one. "Hey, I don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm sure," Ivan said with slight sarcasm. Being around these two idiots usually brought out that side of him. They never failed to break through the serious facade he put on, thus unleashing the ruthlessly indifferent and sarcastic asshole who laid beneath it.

"Well I'm glad you've finally joined us. You still like your coffee black?"

"Yes please," Ivan sighed, leaning against the counter. He picked up the newspaper laying there and opened it. He didn't actually read it, he just skimmed through the articles looking for something that wasn't totally depressing or completely inaccurate.

Liz handed him a coffee, which he took with a thanks. Angered shouting, less so than before but still annoying and loud, sounded from the living room. He heard from around the corner Matthew huff. The annoyance was clear in his voice.

Ivan never minded taking charge, in fact he rather enjoyed it. Setting down the newspaper and his coffee, he walked into the living room, standing tall behind the couch while the two oblivious idiots played their game. He saw Matthew from the corner of his eye look up from the magazine to watch him wearily, and he clearly saw Alfred pause his own game, looking curious yet eager.

He paused for only a few seconds to watch them shove at each other before deciding enough was enough. He walked around the couch, but his intentions were easily seen through.

"Ivan! Ivan don't you do it!" Gilbert yelled, attempting to stand but whatever was happening on the screen had him clenching his teeth and cursing. It was the perfect opportunity for Ivan to quickly, not turn the console off, but grab it, rip it from its wires, and toss it 'lightly' across the room. He got a laugh from Liz and a cheerful whoop from Alfred. Matthew was hiding his laughter behind his hand.

The screen turning black was like a switch being flipped. Gilbert stood up and threw his controller down, while James set his down on the couch.

"What the fuck Ivan!?" Gilbert seethed, gesturing to his poor game console. "That was expensive!"

"I don't care," Ivan said, always straight to the point. He crossed his arms. "And don't even talk to me about money expenses, not with your bank account."

"It was still mine!" Gilbert lamented, going over to it. He sank to the ground and picked it up, mourning its once perfect, undamaged surface. Jeez, what a fucking asshole Ivan was, destroying his stuff.

"I wouldn't have cared if it was mine," Ivan said. "We need to start thinking about the mission at hand. I want us to leave as soon as possible."

"Well we have to find him first," Liz interjected from the kitchen, poking her head out. "Given who we're dealing with, I don't doubt that he's got witches of his own blocking his energy. It might take a bit of time for me to pin point his location."

"Then the sooner we find where he's hiding, the sooner I can finish my job."

Liz nodded. "I need something of his."

Ivan turned his head to the bathroom. The pearls might worked.

Liz called them to breakfast while Ivan walked into the bathroom and picked up a handful of the pearls. He knew a bit about witchcraft, and hoped these pearls would have enough of Arthur's residue spiritual signature for Liz to hone in on.

He pocketed the pearls and walked to the kitchen. Liz was standing there, a smile on her lips as she drank the rest of his coffee. He took the pearls and gave them to her. "These might do it."

"We'll see," she responded, pushing his empty mug into his hands. She took a plate of food to the dining table while Ivan refilled his coffee.

 _We certainly will,_  he thought. God, he hoped this ended soon.

* * *

Far away, in a curious house with no windows, a man sat on a large chair in a luxurious office. The room reflected the man's obvious wealth, but the two women standing before him were unfazed by the room's beauty and the lure of all its expensive treasures.

One of the woman had a kind face, with short hair to frame it. Her build was a bit thicker than that of her companion, but the man knew that, in her case, looks were deceiving. After all, there were legends about her family's skills and abilities when it came to hunting.

The second woman looked every bit as deadly as she was. With a slim build and an icy cold glare, death awaited those that crossed her. Together they made an odd but effective team, and that was the precise reason Arthur saw fit to hire them.

"Do you accept my terms?" He asked, gazing coldly at them. They were not cheap, not for the task he had in mind for them.

"Yes, as long as you provide the right payment."

"Yes, yes," Arthur said in annoyance, waving his hand at the human standing at the door. She jumped and scurried out of the room, returning moments later with a small gold key. "Take what you wish and then leave. I expect a report later this week. You know where he is."

"Don't worry," the kind one said, taking the key from the servant with a smile. "Brother will be happy to see us."


	5. Chapter 5

Despite his wishes, and much to his annoyance, the rest of the day passed by uneventfully.

It wasn't that he was missing work—like he gave a fuck—or that his apartment was quickly loosing all sense of organization. It was the fact that they were doing nothing.

He knew they had limited movement at the current time. Liz had tried scrying for Arthur's location with no luck. The pearls didn't have a strong enough connection to Arthur's spiritual energy for her to use them to track him. Which was disappointing because it meant three things: 1) He would need to acquire an item suitable for Liz to use, 2) Killing Arthur would have to be postponed until then, and 3) His apartment and temper were subject to four—well, not Matthew so three—incredibly annoying and infuriating individuals.

After breakfast, Liz had performed the failed scrying while Gilbert, James and Alfred sat in front of the television and played games. Matthew occasionally joined them to make teams even, other times it was Liz. Ivan sat at the dining room table and went over his notes from when he'd been an active hunter, specifically the sections on vampires. As much as he wanted to deny it, sitting at a desk and writing stories wasn't the best form of training when it came to fighting otherwordly creatures. He could feel Winter floating behind him, and one thing that became obvious very quickly was that, unlike normal, Winter's presence was not overbearing.

Usually, Winter had the room his namesake—cold, deathly, unwelcome. But Ivan could feel the heat of his apartment, even with Winter close by. He didn't know for sure but he suspected it was because of Alfred. He hadn't had the time to tell Winter about Alfred's aversion to ghosts, but he had the feeling Winter had caught on. Though why Winter cared about the fears of one merman was beyond him. As long as it kept Alfred from complaining and freaking out, it was fine by him.

He sighed, rubbed the back of his neck and looked out the window. The sun was going done, the sky a dull orange. Perhaps it would rain soon. He closed his books and stood up, ignoring Gilbert and Liz's curious looks as he silently made his way to his bedroom.

In his closet, near the back, was a covered panel, with two buttons hidden behind. He pushed one, and waited a few seconds. The large bin under the panel made a groaning noise before the top popped open, disturbing the settled dust. Inside the bin was a black cloth, obscuring the rest of its contents.

Ivan picked up the black shirt, its material familiar all at once to him. Part of his hunter's outfit, customized for maximum utility and maneuverability. The stretchy material of the shirt and pants allowed air to flow through it, and the reinforced fibers protected him against small scale projectiles and the outside elements. The outfit consisted of a shirt, a pair of pants, shoes, and though it may be silly, a black scarf of similar material. It was not nearly as long or sentimental as his normal scarf, instead more like a loose circle of cloth. But it covered his neck and had been made to also fit comfortably over his mouth in the case of fumes. It had saved his life more than once, and for that he kept it in top condition.

He pulled out the clothes to reveal the weapons and papers underneath. A few guns, some large knives in straps, and some documents he'd long ago forgotten the purpose of. He grabbed not a gun but a holster, as well as one of the knives. Then he shut the bin and waited for lock mechanism to click before exiting the closet.

He changed into the shirt and pants quickly, pulling on black jeans he only owned for this reason as well. Carefully, he pulled his scarf over his head and laid it out on his bed. Hesitantly he reached up and touched the raised skin of his scar, almost as if to assure himself that yes, it was still there. A lifelong reminder of his failure.

Shaking himself out of a stupor, he slipped the black scarf over his head and strapped the holster to his chest. He went over to the dresser and opened the top drawer. Small hand guns glinted back up at him. Grabbing two, he checked them over quickly, already knowing they were combat ready, before holstering them. Then he wrapped the knife's strap around his thing, letting it rest near his hand for easy access. He honestly didn't believe he'd need the knife or the guns, but he'd learned many times over it was better to be safe and prepared than sorry.

After grabbing his wallet, keys, and cell phone, he threw on a coat and walked back into the living room. The sun had completely disappeared by the time he was ready.

"Whoa!" Gilbert exclaimed, pausing the game on screen. "Are you getting' ready to fight an army? Damn!"

"Well if this isn't a sight I thought I'd ever see again," Liz said, smiling that shark smile at him.

"Where are you going?" Alfred asked, turning around in the chair. Gilbert and Liz had known him for several years, when he'd been in the prime of his hunting career. They had seen him like this. The three wide eyed merman had not.

"I'm going to Arthur's, to retrieve something suitable enough for Liz to use for scrying. However, since our fight a couple days ago, I'm sure the police have roped his hose off by now. If I want to get something, I'll have to do it now, before they confiscate everything."

"No way," Alfred breathed at the same time James said, "Dude, that's fucking awesome."

Ivan looked between Alfred and James and could easily see the question in their eyes. "I'll try to be quick, nothing should go wrong. And no, you can't come."

Alfred's smile and hopeful look dissolved into disappointment while James frowned and crossed his arms. Ivan paid them no mind, instead walking to the front door. Once again, he could feel Winter hovering nearby. "I will be back, probably after midnight. Don't wait up." And he left.

* * *

He waited around in his car until eleven.

When he was bored he often wondered what people would have thought about him had they been clued in on his presence. He was always extra sure to be as hidden as possible, usually able to carry out his missions in complete stealth mode. Some of his most successful missions had been accomplished without alerting anyone that he'd actually been there. Yeah, he'd been that good.

But back to his habit of spying, it was incredibly boring and dull at times. Though he was good at remaining vigilant at all times, sometimes he had to sit and stare for hours. He was only human.

Luckily he didn't have to wait too long, and really it was only a formality at this point. There were no police cars in the long driveway, but there was police tape around the property. Hopefully not everything would be long gone, as he was sure not all of Arthur's possessions were truly and rightfully his. In hindsight, he shouldn't have acted so rashly, but the instinct to help all those helpless men and women had pushed him into making the decision to pull the trigger at the party, which obviously would lead to the police's involvement. He supposed being out of practice let in room for error. He'd have to work on fixing that.

When the clock on his dash struck eleven he left his car and snuck around the house to the back. This was one of the times he greatly appreciated the fact that he had a ghost around all the time. Ghosts had peculiar abilities, and he happened to have a powerful one nearby.

As a hunter himself and having performed the action several times in the past, Winter put his hand on Ivan's shoulder and made them intangible. This ability allowed a corporeal being like Ivan to pass through solid objects, which was most convenient. They walked through the wall into what looked like a bathroom.

As far as the bathroom revealed, nothing seemed out of place. Though it was only a guest bathroom, it was still lavishly furnished. The police might not have taken anything yet. Now the only thing he had to do was find Arthur's bedroom or better, his bathroom. A brush of some sort would be his best bet.

* * *

What was the saying? Boredom bred chaos, or some shit like that? Well if that was it, it was definitely true. Gilbert was just about ready to blow his fucking brains out and ruin Ivan's boring white wall.

He never thought he'd say it, but he didn't want to play video games anymore. It wasn't because they were boring, it was because he kept losing, and that pissed him off and made him want to throw his controller at the television. He had a feeling that, if he went through with that impulse, Ivan would make good on his death threats. There had been many since they'd met years ago. He knew one day Ivan would finally snap and ring his neck. Better to not push the boundaries of Ivan's patience with a destroyed television.

But damn, James and Alfred were too goddamn good at these stupid dumb games. They'd never even seen an Xbox, how the hell were they so good! Both had a natural talent for first person shooters and slayed Gilbert at all his games. Even arcade games Gilbert had thought he was good at. What bullshit!

Huffing in defeat, Gilbert threw his controller to the ground and stood up from the couch, deciding a nice beer or five would calm him down. Better yet, he knew Ivan loved vodka, maybe he'd down a whole bottle to drown his sorrows. Ivan wouldn't mind, right? Right. Probably but, fuck it. That was his philosophy on life. Fuck it all.

He stopped briefly by Liz on his way. She was leaning on the dining table next to Matthew, explaining the contents of one of her witchcraft books to him. Gilbert rolled his eyes and sidled up next to her.

"Please don't tell me you managed to suck him into your voodoo witchcraft mumbo-jumbo," he teased. Liz smiled and leaned over to give him a quick kiss. "You should know better than anyone that calling my art voodoo gets you a one way ticket to the graveyard, sweetie," she said with a sickly sweet tone against his lips. "Say it again and you'll be sleeping on the couch. Again."

"Alright, alright, sorry," Gilbert said, holding his hands up and backing away. "I get it, no need for the thinly veiled threats, my dear." Liz stuck her tongue out at him and returned to Matthew, who'd been sitting awkwardly while they had their little spat. He winked at the kid before entering the kitchen.

Digging through the freezer, he found a half empty bottle of vodka. He thanked his vampire biology for the millionth time. How many humans could down half a bottle of straight vodka and not get instantly smashed? And that wasn't counting Ivan 'cause the guy was a total freak. His veins were probably pure vodka, it was amazing the guy hadn't dropped dead yet.

He had the rim of the bottle at his lips when he paused. Although he was a vampire, he normally didn't have to rely or use his enhanced senses. Sometimes being able to run super fast had its perks, and super strength was always a welcome ability, but when it came to hearing and smell and shit like that, he didn't really notice a difference.

But if he focused, he could hear the blood pump through four hearts. He could even hear the voices of Ivan's neighbors. The overpowering smell of vodka was hard to get past, but there was a faint smell of...something. It was putrid to his senses, making his nose burn and feel itchy. Jeez, when was the last time Ivan had cleaned his fuckin' place?

He shrugged and brought the bottle fully to his lips to take a large gulp of the alcohol. It burned going down but was satisfying. Damn, if only he could get smashed like he used to. Ah, what fond memories.

He tossed the cap into the garbage and took another swig as he walked back into the living room. He almost spit out the vodka when he did.

"What the hell?" He said aloud. The game was still going but both James and Alfred were asleep. "Way to waste power assholes," he mumbled. "Do you see this...shit?" He turned to Liz but trailed off in confusion. Both Liz and Matthew were also asleep. Liz had slumped onto the table fully while Matthew had his head on Liz's book. "What the fuck?" He whispered to himself.

The smell came back to mind. It was stronger in this room. "Fuck," he exclaimed in sudden realization. Was someone trying to fucking poison them?

_Fuck, what do I do?_  Well what he shouldn't do is stand in the middle of the room like a fucking idiot. The first thought was to get home but...he couldn't leave any of them in the room by themselves. He had the feeling whoever had knocked them out wasn't expecting him to not be effected by gas, and hadn't made a move yet because he was still awake. As long as he was there, everyone was safe.

He dropped the bottle and went to Liz first, out of instinct. He lifted her into his arms and brought her to the couch, where he pushed James over onto his side and sat Liz down carefully. Then he did the same with Matthew, just to have everyone in his sights.

Running a hand through his hair, he then went over to the windows and opened them, nearly breaking the locks in his haste. Being agitated usual had him forgetting his own strength. With the windows open, he hoped whatever gas had knocked them out would clear from the room. He supposed he should be super freaked out right now, but he could hear their hearts beating still. The gas hadn't been to kill, only to incapacitate. That, at least, was reassuring.

He sat on the coffee table and stared at the four of them, and he was sure that if his heart could still beat it'd be going a mile a minute. Pulling out his cell phone from his pocket, the only logical next step he could think of was calling Ivan. Whatever the guy was doing could wait, this took top priority.

* * *

With various items in his pockets—a comb, gloves, various trinkets that looked used in some way—he walked back to his car. He'd found an interesting old journal in a drawer in Arthur's office. The front had been engraved with the title  _Eighteenth Century_  and detailed what seemed to be Arthur's personal life. Despite the age of the journal, it was meticulously well kept, with each entry clear and concise. The one he was reading was titled with the date it'd been written, April 17th, 1748.

_Although I had my reservations at first, the young lad flourishes under the attention of that...well, words cannot describe him, surely. One thing that never ceases to astound me is their relationship. One is so full of disgusting life and brightness, while the other is most at home in the darkness. Why he choose that man goes beyond my understanding, but as long as he knows what he must do when the time comes then I can deal with this arrangement._

_I must say that I've never seen such potential from one so young. Already his abilities far exceed those of my colleagues who so proudly think themselves above the human race. While still a young boy his transformation capabilities are extreme, and powerful. Not only can he change into such a miraculous creature as I have described previously, but he can influence others._

_Imagine! We vampires have this influence over others as well, but it is not as powerful as his. I know that the native species has a commanding influence over others once at full growth, and that makes the young lad even more impressive. I'm glad that I am in contact with him. He will undoubtedly be of great use to me in the future._

He wished he'd met Arthur under different circumstances, as fucked up as that seemed. History had always been something of interest to him, and this was a riveting read. And to think it was someone's personal account of life in the eighteenth century. He was sure Arthur's insight on these entries would have been wonderfully detailed and captivating. It really was a shame he had to hunt down and kill Arthur.

Just as he reached his car his phone buzzed in his pocket. He tucked the journal under his arm and fished out his phone. He was less than happy to see it was Gilbert calling.

"Yes? What do you want?...What do you mean?...Are you sure?...Okay just calm down—get a hold of yourself, I'll be home soon." Was nothing simple in life? He leaves for a few hours and suddenly someone decides to try and what, kidnap them?

Still, the news that the three brothers and Liz were unconscious from some strange gas was disturbing. It had to be because of his actions against Arthur. There simply was no other explanation.

* * *

Gilbert would never admit it but he almost screamed and jumped out of his skin when he heard—very suddenly, he might add!—someone call his name.

"Gilbert?"

He breathed deeply through his nose to contain himself. He hated being startled.

Alfred was sitting upright, rubbing his head. Gilbert had never been knocked out using gas before—but plenty of times from a good punch to the face—so he knew that Alfred and the rest would probably have a headache upon revival.

"Are you okay?" Gilbert asked, handing Alfred a glass of water. Sometimes he had foresight. When it mattered.

"I think so...what happened?" Alfred asked, taking the water.

"Your guess is as good as mine," Gilbert said, sitting down on a chair he'd dragged over from the dining table to watch them. "I was just hoping to get drunk when I heard everyone pass out. I did smell some sort of gas a little while ago, but it's gone now."

"How...how?"

Gilbert shrugged. "I called Ivan. When he gets here and when Liz wakes up, we'll have answers."

They sat in silence for a beat. "So, can we play that game again? Or, can I beat you at that game again?"

Gilbert scowled. "Hey fuck you man, I'm great at that game! It's bullshit that you and James are so good at it!"

Alfred laughed. His headache was already diminishing. "It's fun because you get angry."

" _'It's fun because you get angry'_  shut the fuck up and get ready to get fuckin' demolished," Gilbert growled, grabbing a controller to boot up the game. Alfred followed suit with a smile on his face.

Halfway through their first game Matthew woke up. He groaned and stretched. Gilbert hadn't exactly been careful when putting him on the couch, unlike Liz who he place on the couch as if she'd been made of glass.

"What happened?" Matthew asked, snapping to attention much quicker than Alfred had.

"Gas, called Ivan, everything's fine," Gilbert responded distractedly. Alfred was thoroughly handing him his own ass and it was pissing him off.

"Oh." Matthew remained silent, switching between watching them play and staring at the wall.

* * *

Ivan could admit that he was mildly impressed with Gilbert's quick thinking. From recounts of humans living with vampires Ivan knew that sometimes, the vampires unintentionally neglected their human servants. It seemed that being 'dead' made them less receptive to the needs humans had, despite having been alive at one point in time. So he was thankful Gilbert at least had the common sense to open the window to clear away the gas.

By the time he arrived back home all of them were awake again. He listened to Gilbert's account of what had happened before returning to his closet to deposit his hunting gear. Given what had happened he decided to forego normal attire and remained in his hunting clothes. It really helped to be ready for anything.

It disturbed him that all of them were awake, especially since not that much time had passed between Gilbert's phone call and him arriving back at his apartment. Had the gas been weak? Was it meant to last for such a short amount of time? If so that was impractical and disconcerting. What was even the point of trying to gas them if it wore off practically immediately?

That also led to the question of what truly had happened? The timing of everything was too careful, too planned. He leaves and suddenly there's a gas leak? Unlikely. Someone was watching them, and he had a feeling it was because of his little battle with Arthur.

But if that was so, they were probably a vampire. And if that was true, they had to be able to sense that Gilbert was as well. Why use a gas if it didn't effect vampires? The whole thing was confusing and worrisome.

It was well past dinner time—almost twelve thirty, in fact—but that didn't stop Ivan, with Alfred's help, from making dinner.

Well, 'help' was a strong word. More like Alfred got in the way and asked every question imaginable while Ivan tried to cook.

"Alfred, can you hand me that jar there?" Ivan asked, pointing to a small jar of spices. Alfred grabbed it and handed it to him. "What is that for?"

"It's...hard to explain." Ivan sidestepped the question with another question. "Did Arthur cook you food?"

"No, thank the Gods!" Alfred said, hopping up onto one of the counters, finally out of the way.

"He didn't feed you?"

"No he did. Well, the servants did. Arthur's a horrible cook, he probably would have killed us. He doesn't like to admit it though. Pride is a weird thing to vampires, I don't get it. But yeah, it's not hard to feed fish, you know? Just throw in some raw fish bites, it does the trick."

Ivan frowned as he watched the meat sizzle in the pan. "That doesn't sound very appetizing, and you are not a fish. A tail shouldn't define you in your entirety."

"Well, technically we are, you know, fish? We are half fish."

"You are also half human, that should make you human more than anything. That, in my opinion, is the most important detail."

There was a silence where Ivan focused on cooking. He thought maybe Alfred had left, or gotten distracted by something, until Alfred spoke again.

"Thank you. I...don't think I've ever heard anyone say that."

Ivan turned half way around. They caught each other's eyes and Alfred smiled.

"You're welcome," Ivan said, turning back to dinner. Perhaps having company in the kitchen was alright. Different but welcomed.

* * *

"Why are we even here." A young and angry looking woman was standing with her arms crossed and hip cocked. She was scowling at her sister, a nicer looking woman who was currently standing in front of a door.

"Sweetie you know why we're here. She'll be helpful to us, we need her to find them."

"I'm perfectly capable of finding them myself," Natalia hissed out. Katyusha huffed and knocked on the door despite Natalia's dislike of the woman they had come to see. Her sister could hold a grudge forever, that was for sure.

Natalia spun and stormed away from the old house. How she hated the woman Katyusha insisted they employ. She could find her own brother without outsider help, how dare Katyusha bring that bitch into their affairs.

The door swung open and Katyusha smiled warmly at her long time friend. "Laura, my friend! It is so nice to see you again!"

"Katyusha, it's been such a long time! I see you are still in your line of work and with your sister, how nice," Laura said, her tone turning icy near the end. It seemed she disliked Natalia just as much as Natalia disliked her.

Katyusha leaned in close, whispering, "Well, you know how she is. I feel like I need to watch over her and offer her guidance. She may seem cold but she has a warm heart, truly."

Laura smiled thinly. That was partially true, but she'd let Katyusha believe what she chose to. It was often hard to get through her delusions of a perfect world. "How can I help you friend?"

"It just so happens that we've been contracted to find my dear brother," Katyusha said. "We were told that he's stolen something valuable from our contractor and he'd like them back, if you catch my drift. Unfortunately, neither Natalia nor I have been in contact with him in several years ever since he left us. We need your help finding him. I'd like to call in the favor you owe me. We'll be even."

"Hmm," Laura hummed. It certainly would be good to get that favor off her back. It came to her mind every so often as a cruel reminder that someday Katyusha would ask something of her. Considering what she'd asked of Katyusha, this was much more tame. It would be foolish to decline the offer. "I accept."

"Wonderful!" Katyusha cheered, smiling widely. "I just know we're going to have a fun time!"

_Hunting down your own brother? And with your crazy sister around?_  Laura said in her mind, smiling along with Katyusha's enthusiasm. Well, if anything, this would be a learning experience. "Just give me some time to pack the necessary items I'll require and then we can leave. Are you in a hurry?"

"Yes!" They turned at the distant yell. Natalia was waiting by the car, tapping her foot impatiently. She looked decidedly unhappy, no doubt she'd heard that Laura accepted.

"The sooner the better," Katyusha agreed.


End file.
